From ESPN’s Adam Schefter by way of the Daily Beast, it seems New England Patriot’s owner Robert Kraft is one of a number of wealthy and powerful men ensnared by the ongoing South Florida prostitution and sex trafficking probe.
...Over 200 arrests have been made and at least 12 businesses shut down as the result of an eight month-long investigation spanning across three counties on Florida’s Treasure Coast. The area is a seasonal playground for many of America’s rich and powerful, and is peppered with million-dollar estates including President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort.
Along with Kraft, criminal charges of soliciting prostitution have been brought against power-players John Childs, the founder of private equity firm J.W. Childs and Associates, as well as John Havens, former CFO of Citigroup. On Friday, Johnny DelPrete, long-time boyfriend of star LPGA golfer Jessica Korda, was also arrested in Stuart, Florida according to Martin County Sheriff’s Office booking records.
What’s more:
Sources told ESPN, “Kraft is not the biggest name involved [in this investigation].” Hobe Sound resident Mike Gloor, who claims he knows some of the men charged, suspects the same. “We’re just waiting for those names” he told The Daily Beast. “I know people in Hobe Sound that are very prominent. This is going to destroy their life.”
And, of course, this story isn’t just about the men.
There is a stark contrast between the high-profile men charged in the investigation and women who performed sex acts on them, whom authorities said are trafficking victims.
“These women were sleeping in massage parlors, on the massage tables and had no access to transportation.” Martin County Police Sheriff, William Snyder, said in a press conference.
Vivian Pham, owner of V&V Nails next door to Orchids spa, told The Daily Beast that the women “are all Chinese. None of them speak English. Sometimes, I would see people outside try to talk to them, and they wouldn’t understand.”